Eichbaum CShaw RH20072007PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, 2007, 85 (3), pp. 609 - 6400033-3298https://hdl.handle.net/10179/5686Political advisers are an established third element in a number of Westminster-styled jurisdictions, as they are in New Zealand's institution of executive government. In this paper we report the initial findings of a research project focusing on the role and accountabilities of ministerial advisers in New Zealand. We locate these findings in the context of a growing body of international and comparative research on the role and accountabilities of non civil- or public-service advisers within political executives and comment on the extent to which the findings affirm or refute the view that the 'third element' constitutes a threat to the continued application of Westminster principles and practices in New Zealand's system of government - once described as more Westminster than Westminster. In doing so, we highlight deficiencies in standard conceptions of politicization and argue that there is a need to more clearly differentiate between its procedural and substantive dimensions. © 2007 The Author. Journal compilation © 2007 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.609 - 640Journal article10.1111/j.1467-9299.2007.00666.x224251467-92991503 Business and Management1605 Policy and Administration1606 Political Science